Studies
by Brackets002
Summary: Oneshots as part of a singular story, if that makes sense. Calvin and Hobbes growing up together, as several people around them suddenly start seeing an anthropomorphic tiger.
1. Chapter 1

"Hobbes, what are you?"

The question had come very suddenly; it took Hobbes a second to even realize that Calvin had done something besides stare at him like he had for the last ten minutes. "I'm sorry," he said, his ears twitching. "I'm not sure I understand your question."

Calvin stroked an imaginary goatee. "First, let me point something out: No one else can see you. We realized that two days after I met you. I am literally the only one in this entire _town_ who sees an anthropomorphic tiger when I look at you."

"Except the two guys who broke into the house while you were away last year."

"_Maybe_. They had already taken all the jewelry _and_ the TV before they left. The only evidence that you scared them away is your word, and for all I know you're a product of my imagination."

Hobbes bristled. "What?"

"That's what I was trying to get at. Everybody I've spoken to in the year you've been here has, at one point or another, called you a stuffed tiger, so I'm assuming they just see you as a stuffed animal. So that's the minds of an easy twenty people versus my own. So, my question is: are you a stuffed animal that I mentally Photoshop into a bipedal, sentient, intelligent Bengal tiger with human vocal cords, a human aging rate and opposable thumbs? Or are you a bipedal, sentient, intelligent Bengal tiger with human vocal cords, a human aging rate and opposable thumbs that everybody else I've ever met has mentally Photoshopped into a stuffed animal? The former option only makes sense if we consider the possibility that I'm insane, which probably isn't too far off the mark, as, since we've already established, 'sanity' is not a strictly definable term. The latter option makes no sense no matter _WHAT_ conditions we consider."

"Which is exactly why it makes sense."

Calvin blinked. Then blinked again. "You lost me."

Hobbes leaned forward in his seat. "How many people do you know who would just _accept_ that an anthropomorphic tiger exists?"

"No one."

"And what would happen, do you think, if one suddenly appeared in their lives?"

Calvin thought for a second. "...Mind blown."

"_Mind blown_ doesn't begin to cover it. The average human might just lose their mind if they found that there was an entire other sentient _subspecies_ that they were completely unaware of. One that branched off of a supposedly dumb animal, no less. You know how you feel really tired when you're running, but in fact you could run for a lot longer? It's sort of like that. The brain alters your sensory input to protect itself from harm. Apparently, I'm very, very similar in looks to a stuffed tiger, so that's what they alter me into."

"Which is all very well and good," said Calvin, "but you move around by yourself _all the time_. Why don't they alter you into, I don't know, a _human_, maybe?"

Hobbes shrugged. "Maybe my proportions aren't quite close enough to human ones."

Calvin leaned forward. "Alright then. Let's say that's our hypothesis. How exactly would we test that?"

"Simple. Me being an anthropomorphic tiger that people imagine is a stuffed animal is, according to you, extremely improbable. However, an effect without a cause is _impossible_. There is no conceivable way something could just _happen_ with nothing causing it, right?"

"Right." Calvin suddenly had a brainwave. "Scratch my arm."

"What?"

Calvin pointed at his left forearm. "You've got claws. Use 'em. I'll show my mom, and if she can see them, you exist."

"...I was thinking more along the lines of me pouncing on you."

"You've done that. You've done that over a hundred times. Not once did I experience any lasting damage. I imagine that was on purpose, but it still means that the only evidence of you doing that is me getting dirty. If this leaves a scar, and if Mom can see it, you are very, very, very obviously real. Scratch. My. Arm."

Hobbes sighed, reached out his arm, extended his claws, and hesitantly dug into Calvin's skin with them. "You're sure?"

"Just be quick about it. It's worse if you drag it out."

_Roughly three seconds later_

"OOOOWWWW!"

Calvin's mother jumped at the scream of pain, dropping the dish she had been washing. A second later, her seven-year-old son came barreling into the room, his left forearm covered in blood.

"Do you see them?" he gasped, evidently oblivious to the pain such a wound would create in his excitement. "Do you see them?"

His mom bent down to examine his arm. "Oh, dear god," she whispered. There was far more blood than what she had seen at first glance. Grabbing a paper towel, she wiped away as much of it as she could with one sheet, then cleaned the remainder of it with a second. "What did you do, Calvin?" she asked her son, who still seemed to barely notice the pain. "Were you playing with knife? You aren't supposed to do..." The rest of her sentence caught in her throat as she saw the wound on Calvin's arm.

Four long gashes in his skin, the entire length of his forearm. Calvin's mom was no expert, but that kind of mark could only be created by some kind of animal. "Calvin," she whispered, "what did this?"

Calvin beamed, glancing at the stuffed tiger that was leaned against the edge of the doorway. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

Calvin's mom did a double-take. She could have been wrong, but she didn't think that Calvin brought Hobbes into the room. But there it was, leaned against the doorframe in a way that looked almost casual, if it had been alive. She glanced back at Calvin's forearm. _Did Hobbes- No. No, of course not. It's a stuffed animal._

When she looked back up, the stuffed animal was now sat up right next to Calvin, and his mom suddenly noticed that the stitching that formed it's mouth was slightly crooked. Almost like a smirk.

**A/N: Have you noticed that the only real evidence that Hobbes isn't real is that nobody can see him? He has tied Calvin to a chair, he has shaved Calvin's head, the evidence of his pouncing on Calvin, while temporary, is clearly visible and his mom actually asks him about it more than once, and, well, somebody's got to lower the rope ladder. Because of this, I'm writing this under the assumption that Hobbes is an actual anthropomorphic tiger that nobody can see because of our Weirdness Censor. Something that I don't think Calvin would have.**

**Also, this conversation, while maybe a little mature, is actually fairly similar to the conversations that Calvin and Hobbes have while going down hills in the wagon or the sled. They often have very, very deep philosophical and/or scientific discussions, so sooner or later the subject of discussion was going to be Hobbes' existence. In this fic, it just so happens to be a year or so after their meeting.**

**Calvin actually is a genius, by the way. He's displayed the knowledge of philosophy and science more akin to someone four times his age on more than one occasion. He just doesn't give a $#*^ about school.**

**I was planning on making this story several chapters long, spanning Calvin's childhood and college life, making gradually more and more characters overcome their Weirdness Censor, but if nobody likes it, I won't continue. So if you do like this idea, leave a review and let me know. And while you're at it, you could offer a few ideas for later chapters.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Okay, somebody said that Calvin and Hobbes getting older ruined the entire point, but the problem with them just being six of seven is that that means that there are many, many things I cannot do. I cannot set Calvin and Susie up on a (blind) date, I cannot introduce Calvin to Linus Van Pelt, I cannot have Hobbes hit puberty and alter his proportions to more closely resemble human ones (The Weirdness Censors would eventually be forced to "humanize" him, which he would consider a personal insult; is this even a good idea?). So here's what I think. Golden Keyblade just said he didn't want Calvin and Hobbes in college, so what if I ended the story with Calvin graduating high school?**

** As you might have figured out, I'm sort of winging this. As such, ideas about future chapters would be awesome. I'm still iffy about having Hobbes "humanized". While I'm waiting for you amazing people to tell me what you think, here's another chapter set in the same general time period. Nobody sees Hobbes in this chapter, but Susie is slightly shaken.**

* * *

"Trick or treat!"

"Oh, hello," said the lady at the door, reaching into her bowl of candy and putting a handful of sweets into the kid on her left's bag. "What are you two dressed as?"

"I'm a tiger!" said the tiger.

The lady chuckled. "I can see that." She turned to the other child, who was just dressed in ordinary street clothes. "And... um... what are you supposed to be?"

The child, obviously reciting a practiced line, said, "I'm yet another resource-consuming kid in an overpopulated planet, raised to an alarming extent by Madison Avenue and Hollywood, poised with my cynical and alienated peers to take over the world when you're old and weak!"

The lady stared. She wasn't sure what creeped her out more; the vocabulary of this seven-year-old, or the fact that she now saw young children in a completely new and scary light. Grabbing a handful of candy, she dumped it into the kid's bag and hastily closed the door.

"Am I scary, or what?" said Calvin, turning to Hobbes.

"Absolutely terrifying. I love Halloween. Everybody sees me as more than an inanimate object, because they assume I'm just wearing the best costume ever."

"When in reality, _I_ am!" They were back on the sidewalk by now.

"No. You decided to go as the exact same thing you were last year. You didn't even reword the line. The best costume is... hmmm... her's."

Calvin looked over to where Hobbes was pointing. "Really?! All the costumes around and you go with Susie's? She's... What is she?"

"I have no idea. Let's go ask."

"No."

"Yes," said Hobbes, walking towards her, followed by a reluctant Calvin. "Hi, Susie. What are you dressed as?"

Susie looked at Hobbes, confused. "Um, do I know you?"

Hobbes saw an opportunity, and took it. "No, not directly, but Calvin's told me all about you. Isn't that right, Calvin?"

The look Calvin gave him clearly said _I hate you._ "Um, yeah, I guess. Sure. So what are you dressed as, anyway?"

Susie looked down at her costume. "A reporter. And you?"

"He," Hobbes said, before Calvin could say anything, "is Calvin. Terrifying, right?"

"Ha! Absolutely. But, um, I don't think you've told me your name."

"Oh! Right. I'm Hobbes." He extended a paw/hand to shake.

"What? I'm being serious."

"So am I. Hobbes."

Susie examined the tiger's face. Holy Moley, that makeup job was great. If she didn't know better, she'd think that he was an actual, bipedal tiger. There were even sharp teeth! "O...kay... nice to meet you, 'Hobbes.' Now, I have to go. Mom wanted me back home by eight, and I want to get as much candy as possible." With that, she pushed Calvin out of the way ("Hey!") and started down the sidewalk.

"Okay, really," she said, turning around. "There is no way your name is Hobbes. That's the name of Calvin's stuffed tiger. Who are you, really?"

Hobbes smirked. One ear twitched.

Susie, taken aback by what was unquestionably a fake ear twitching like a real one, hastily said, "Never mind," turned, and walked away. Somewhat faster than she usually would have. That was...odd. But possible. Completely so. A skilled makeup artist could definitely create cat ears that could do that. **Absolutely.**

"Hey," said Hobbes, watching Susie go, "I think I shook her."

"Good for you," said Calvin, turning. "Now come on. My bag's only half full, and I want it to be overflowing before the night gets out."

* * *

**Okay, technically _everyone_ sees Hobbes in this chapter, but no one acknowledges that he's anything more than a kid in a costume.**


	3. Chapter 3

The problem with Calvin, Hobbes decided, opening the kitchen cabinet, was that he was human.

There was nothing wrong with that, far from it. If there were no humans, technology would never have advanced to things like refrigerators and fishing poles, most sapient animals besides him being the technophobes that they were. The real problem with humans was that they were so caught up in their technology and "superiority" that they didn't really try to slow down, enjoy life. As Hobbes tore the can of tuna open using one of his claws, he mentally took back that statement. He was every bit as guilty of that at times as they were. But he also liked to take walks in the woods with Calvin.

That was when Calvin seemed most like a brother to him. When they were in the forest, discussing the meaning of life.

Hobbes grabbed two pieces of bread, the mayonnaise, pickles and an onion, setting them on the counter. He absently looked at the clock, noting that he still had several hours before Calvin got home. School. Another problem with being human. Back in India, sapient tiger cubs were educated in the forest, a combination of learn-by-experience and typical human education. Cubs were educated from when they were six months old until the age of four, learning what they'd need to survive in the wild. _Fat lot of good it does here..._

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of knocking on the door. Abandoning his sandwich for the time being, and glad of the opportunity of something to do while waiting for Calvin to be home from school, he walked to the hallway right inside the front door and dropped onto all fours, getting into the ready position for a form pounce. The knocking continued for several seconds, then a yell of "COMING!" sounded from upstairs and Calvin's mother came flying down. Hobbes stood up, taking a few steps back, as she reached the door and opened it.

"Hi..."

Hobbes raised his brow, his left ear twitching slightly. Susie, here, on a school day, during school hours. He would have thought that the odds of air turning into gold were higher. Then again, judging by the sound of her voice alone, she was probably sick with something.

His guess was confirmed by the conversation taking place in front of him. Susie was, indeed, sick with influenza, and her mom had had to go into town for several hours, and so had sent her here. Calvin's mom nodded, opening the door the rest of the way to let her in.

"Hey, it's Hobbes!" Susie said, walking over to where she saw a stuffed tiger slumped against the wall. "I haven't see him in, jeez, how long has it been, a year? Hi, Hobbes, how've you been?"

"I've been great," Hobbes replied, for now ignoring the fact that she was completely unaware he had spoken. "I was making myself a sandwich when you got here; want one?"

Susie, having not heard it, didn't answer the question. Instead, she coughed into a tissue, turned back to Calvin's mom, and said, "Really, thanks for letting me stay here. I know it's a little rude for me to drop by unannounced, but-"

She was cut off by the sound of the phone ringing. Calvin's mom immediately walked to where the phone was sitting on the table just inside the kitchen, picked it up, and said, "Hello?" And, a minute later, "He did _what?_"

"The principal?" Susie asked.

"I'm betting," said Hobbes, "that Calvin's going to be here within twenty minutes."

Susie jumped, having had her back to him and not seen that it had been he who spoke. She spun around, looking wildly at where the voice had come from, and seeing a stuffed tiger slumped against the wall exactly where it had been thirty seconds before.

"Susie, you'll have to excuse me for a few minutes," said Calvin's mom, putting the phone down. "I have to go pick Calvin up from school early. Apparently he put a bucket of paint above a doorway."

"What color paint?" asked Hobbes.

"Where did he get paint at school?" asked Susie.

"I have no idea," said Calvin's mom. "I'll be back in ten minutes. Will your mother mind?"

"I wasn't going to tell her," said Susie, shrugging.

_five minutes later_

Susie turned the page of her book, smiling to herself. _The Tempest_, while not necessarily the best of Shakespeare's works, was definitely a good read. She leaned back in the armchair she was in, eyes moving rapidly back and forth across the page. On the couch next to her, the stuffed tiger she had always been so fond of sat, leaning against the armrest.

At least, that's what she thought, until she glanced up and saw that there was nothing there.

Susie blinked. She had put Hobbes right there. She looked at the floor, to see if it had fallen, then back up. Huh. Maybe her memory had been playing tricks on her. It was fond of doing that, where Hobbes was concerned. She returned to _The Tempest_, and looked back up again when she heard a sound.

Hobbes was there. So was a plate with tuna sandwiches.

Susie was starting to get creeped out. "Are you haunted?" she asked the stuffed tiger, half-serious. "Because you were there, then you weren't, now you're back with sandwiches. Stuffed tigers usually don't do that." After receiving, predictably, no answer, she looked at the plate on the small table between the couch and chair. "Are one of these for me?" she asked, then, assuming so, she took one and returned to her book.

"Ooooooooooo," she heard. "I am a ghost that haunts stuffed animals. Ooooooooooooooo. You shouldn't take sandwiches from ghosts. They might be slimy or something."

It took a second for it to hit Susie that the warm, friendly, slightly growl-like voice _should not have been there,_ so familiar she was with it. When she realized this, she jumped, gave a small half-scream, and fell out of her chair. Looking around quickly, she saw no one who could have said that, just Hobbes. Who, she noticed suddenly, had crooked stitching forming the mouth; it sort of resembled a cheesy grin.

Susie shook her head, mentally pulling her view of reality back together. Jeez, she was going crazy. What next? One of the sandwiches floating upwards and disappearing?

She suddenly heard the front door open, accompanied by a yell of "I'M HO-huh?" As Calvin cautiously walked into the living room where she was, he looked at her with a mixture of curiosity and horror. "Susie? What are you..." And then he noticed Hobbes on the couch, and his expression changed to pure panic. "Oh..."

And suddenly, the stuffed tiger launched itself into the air, aimed directly at Calvin. Except it wasn't a stuffed animal. The instant its movement had drawn Susie's attention, a living, breathing, tiger-like _thing_ had been there, ready to pounce. It catapulted at Calvin, who turned away, his eyes already shut, ready for the impact.

Three things happened in the space of a second. First, the tiger landed on Calvin, knocking him to the ground. Second, Susie's entire understanding of the world twisted violently, trying to cope with this new information, instead becoming steadily more damaged the more it tried. Third, she fainted.

About a minute later, she was brought out of her faint by the feeling of cold water landing on her forehead. Blinking her eyes open, she saw the same tiger as a minute ago, holding a half full/empty glass of water, standing over her next to Calvin.

"See?" said Calvin. "Told you it works."

"Huh. Apparently it does."

The fact that the same voice emanating from that tiger's mouth had spoken to her several minutes ago did nothing to stop Susie from screaming. Indeed, she might have freaked out a little more because of it. As it was, she shrieked at the top of her lungs, frantically pushing herself backwards, away from the tiger.

Impossible. Unthinkably improbable. Completely absurd. Insanity itself. And yet, there it was, a bipedal, evidently sentient, apparently intelligent _tiger _with _opposable thumbs _that could_ talk._ It should not have existed. It _should not have existed._ It _SHOULD NOT_-

The rest of the water in the glass hit her in the face, startling her out of her freak out. "Susie," the tiger said, dropping onto all fours so that their eyes were at the same level. "Yes, I am real. Yes, I am an anthropomorphic tiger. Get over it."

It took a second for Susie to find her voice. "Get over it?" she repeated. "_GET OVER IT?!_ This- you-"

"Have been here for the last two and a half years." The tiger waited a beat for that factoid to sink in before raising one of its front paws (_Not hands. No way. Not hands._) to shake. "We haven't been properly introduced. You're Susie Derkins. My name is Hobbes."

Susie blinked. Then blinked again. "I'm sorry, _what?_"

The tiger- Hobbes- looked annoyed and amused simultaneously. "My name is Hobbes, I am a sapient tiger, and I have lived with Calvin since before you moved here. You, like everyone else except Calvin, has seen me as nothing more than a plush toy for the duration of that time, for precisely this reason. When confronted so abruptly with the fact that I exist, the human brain _cannot take it._ Calvin and I have tried to shake you into a state where you would accept my existence for the last... _while_. And seeing as you aren't screaming and trying to claw my eyes out-"

"I haven't ruled it out yet," Susie said, with no change in her near-panic expression.

Hobbes chuckled. "Yeah, I'm not surprised. Still, I'm glad you didn't fall off the deep end."

"How can I be sure I haven't?" Susie asked, with no change in her near-panic expression.

Calvin cleared his throat. "Well, _I've_ been seeing him for the entire time he's been here, so you have that."

"That doesn't help," Susie said, with no change in her near-panic expression. "I've _never_ thought you were sane."

"Thanks a lot."

"Just shake already," said Hobbes, wiggling the fingers of his offered paw. "We can deal with the insanity idea later. Right now, it's nice to finally meet you."

Susie looked at the offered paw uncertainly, then hesitantly took it and shook delicately. Hobbes smiled, responding with a much firmer shake and rising into a standing position, pulling Susie back onto her feet.

"Alright," said Hobbes, smiling pleasantly. "Now that the introductions are out of the way, were you going to finish your sandwich or can I have it?"


End file.
